He wonders whether to give him a honest answer or not. He supposes that if he doesn't, he'll keep getting pestered until he does.
"I hate chains and cages," he says, still staring out the window. (He hates, too, the sight of someone being used and thrown away once they've performed what was asked of them.) "And I was bored of grieving."
He tilts his head a little, training an eye on Avery. "Don't mistake this for goodwill," he says, after a moment, his voice irritable. "I'm not doing this because I like you."
There's something insulting about that word. "Please. Like I feel anything but contempt for you, too. How many times did you rip the love of my life away from her home and put her in danger again?"
The wizard can be as loyal to his fallen master as he likes. Avery knows he's extended the hand of mercy and given them more chances to turn their lives around than many others would have.
"Still... I'll thank you for getting me out. I guess."
He waves a hand, immediately dismissive. "I don't need your gratitude, especially if it's that begrudging. Save your breath."
As for the comments about the love of Avery's life, he has nothing to say. He has no emotional attachment to the princess; whether their plans involved her or not, she was simply another human in the end.
He owes this man nothing; he could simply leave him as he is, without guidance, lost. (The same way he once was, living here in a house that felt desolate and empty long before he'd left it.) If he truly wanted, he could be long gone before the hero could follow.
In the glass, his reflection stares back at him. For a moment, it's years younger, with an expression he detests. The crumbling, frail creature who still has a grip on his heart, a sadly-smiling face of the beast that coils heavily in his ribcage, twists around his spine, a constant and affectionate companion.
He watches his reflection and knows that though he could leave, he won't. He detests that too.
"I'm just heading you off at the pass before you can rib me for not thanking you," Avery replies with a shrug, then stops and grins as he sets his bowl down, looking far too amused with himself. "Pun unintended."
His fingers linger on the spoon, but finally he lets it go. He's full, no matter what his body seems to say.
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"I hate chains and cages," he says, still staring out the window. (He hates, too, the sight of someone being used and thrown away once they've performed what was asked of them.) "And I was bored of grieving."
He tilts his head a little, training an eye on Avery. "Don't mistake this for goodwill," he says, after a moment, his voice irritable. "I'm not doing this because I like you."
no subject
There's something insulting about that word. "Please. Like I feel anything but contempt for you, too. How many times did you rip the love of my life away from her home and put her in danger again?"
The wizard can be as loyal to his fallen master as he likes. Avery knows he's extended the hand of mercy and given them more chances to turn their lives around than many others would have.
"Still... I'll thank you for getting me out. I guess."
no subject
As for the comments about the love of Avery's life, he has nothing to say. He has no emotional attachment to the princess; whether their plans involved her or not, she was simply another human in the end.
He owes this man nothing; he could simply leave him as he is, without guidance, lost. (The same way he once was, living here in a house that felt desolate and empty long before he'd left it.) If he truly wanted, he could be long gone before the hero could follow.
In the glass, his reflection stares back at him. For a moment, it's years younger, with an expression he detests. The crumbling, frail creature who still has a grip on his heart, a sadly-smiling face of the beast that coils heavily in his ribcage, twists around his spine, a constant and affectionate companion.
He watches his reflection and knows that though he could leave, he won't. He detests that too.
no subject
His fingers linger on the spoon, but finally he lets it go. He's full, no matter what his body seems to say.